Electropneumatic braking appliance for railways.



M. H, BURCHARD L R. P. NOBLE. BLEGTROPNBUMATIG BRAKING APPLIANGB PoR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 31, 1911,

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M H. BURGHARD & R. P. NOBLE. BLBGTBOPNBUMATIG BEARING APPLIANGE PoR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 31, 1911. I

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Inl/'mm M. H. BURCHARD 6L R. P. NOBLE. ELEGTROPNEUMATIG BRAKING APPLIANGE FOR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 31, 1911.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAYO H. BURCHARD, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, .AND ROBERT P. NOBLE, OF PORTLAND, OREGON.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 19, 1911.

Application filed May 31, 1911. Serial No. 630,320.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, MAYO H. BURCHARD and ROBERT P. NOBLE, citizens of the United States, and residents, respectively, of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, and Portland, county of Multnomah, and State of Oregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electropneumatic Braking Appliances for Railways, of whichthe following is a specification, and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to safety braking appliances for pleasure railways, commonly known as roller coasters. In devices of this character an endless track is laid upon a trestle arranged with varying and sharp grades, the cars being usually operated by gravity, and after being started from a home station run continuously until they arrive at the place of starting. Such amusement devices are attended with serious danger, particularly due to the fact that cars, or trains of cars, are operated over the track in rapid succession, and should one of the cars or trains become disabled and be thereby stopped, the following cars or trains are apt to occasion violent collisions. It is customary to run these cars or trains without an attendant, and the occupants are powerless to control them in order to avoid such collisions.

The object of the invention is to provide a series-of track brakes located at suitable positions along the line, all of such brakes being controllable simultaneously from a central point, such as the home or starting station, the several sets of brakes being preferably independently releasable. By such means the track is divided into blocks or sections of such length that each will be occupied by but a single train at a time.

' Should an accident occur, the operator in control is able to simultaneously set the brakes of all the blocks or sections, and thereby stop the trains before they can leave the blocks they severally occupy at the time.

The invention is fully hereinafter described, and is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a perspective of the track; Fig. 2 is a detail in plan of a portion of the track and one of the brake appliances; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal, central section of the device as illustrated in Fig. 2; Fig. 4: is a diagrammatic illustration of the electric and pneumatic appliances for controlling thebrakes; Fig. 5 is an inverted plan view of one of the cars used on the device; Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the electromagnetically controlled valve for setting the brakes, taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. 7; Fig. 7 is a sectional view of the valve mechanism taken on the line 7 7 of Fig. 6; the central portion of the figure, however, being on the plane of the line 7a and the upper portion of. the figure being shown in elevation; Fig. 8 1s a view, partly in section and partly in elevation, taken on theline 8 8 of Fig. 6; Fig. 9 is a sectional detail of the release valve; and Fig. l() is a detail section on the line 10-l0 of Fig. 5.

The track 10 is shown as mounted upon a suitable trestle 11, this trestle being so built that the track passes successively a number of crests, as 12, 13, 14, of diminishing heights. The starting station is shown at l5 and the home or dischargingstation at 16. At each of the crests there is placed a track brake, these brakes being generally designated by the numerals 17, 18, 19. The brakes employed are of known form, comprising a stationary friction bar 20 located inside of and parallel with one of the rails 21 of the track, and a laterally movable bar or jaw 22 parallel with the bar 20. The jaw 22 is actuated by a plurality of toggle levers 23 reacting against a fixed bar 24 located inside of and near the opposite track rail 25. The toggle levers are actuated by means of a rod 26 connected with the piston rod 27 of an air or brake cylinder 28. The several sets of brakes and the means for directly actuating each being alike, but one need be described in detail.

Associated with each ofthe brake cylinders 28 there is an auxiliary tank 29 for containing compressed air, the several auxiliary tanks being supplied from a main storage tank 30 through a pipe 31 and branch pipes, as 32, 33, 34, leading to the several auxiliary tanks. A pipe 35 leads from each auxiliary tank 29 to a valve casing 36; a pipe 37 leading from this valve casing to the cylinder 28. The valve mechanism inclosed within the casings 36 is controlled by means of electromagnets, the electromagnets of all the set-s of brakes being in series with a circuit 38, 39 leading from a storage battery 40 and being provided with a manually operated switch 41, which switch will be located at or near the starting station, thereby placing all of the sets of brakes under the control of a single operator, who is enabled by closing the switch to simultaneously actuate them all.

"While the valve mechanism interposed between the auxiliary tanks and the brake cylinders 28 may be of various forms, we have found it desirable, in order to secure cer tainty of action and to avoid accidental setting of the brakes by reason of leakage of air past the valve, to employ the form of valve illustrated in the drawings. The pipe 35 connects with the port 42 of the valve casing, this port leading to an annular chamber 43 surrounding a downwardly seating valve 44 which is held to its seat by means of a spring 45. A small duct 46 leads upi wardly through the valve 44 to a chamber 47, which communicates through a duct 48 with a chamber 49 surrounding an upwardly seating and normally e closed valve 50, which is held to its seat by a spring 51. Then the valve 44 is lifted, air from the port 42 enters the passage 52 which leads to the outlet 53 from the valve casing, from which outlet the pipe 37 leads to the cylinder 28. Normally, the pressure within the chambers 47 and 49 is balanced with the tank pressure. The valve 50 is controlled by the electromagnet 54, which, being energized, draws down its core 55, which is connected directly with the valve, forcing the latter from its seat. The air within the chambers 49 and 47, being thus allowed to escape, enters the passage 56 leading through the port 57 to the outlet 53. The pressure being thus reduced in the chamber 47 below that in the chamber 43, the valve 44 is automatically raised, permitting a free flow of air to the brake cylinder, past a check valve 58 in the pipe 87. Upon the opening of the circuit within which the electromagnet 54 is incorporated, the valve 50 is reseated, the balance of pressure in the chambers 47 and 43 is immediately restored and the valve 44 is reseated by the action of the spring 45. An exhaust pipe 59 leads from the cylinder 28, being shown as a branch of the pipe 87,lead ing therefrom between the check valve 58 and the cylinder. This exhaust pipe is provided with a manually controlled valve 60 normally held to its seat by means of a spring 61 and controlled by means of a hand lever 62. Upon the opening of the valve 60, the piston within the cylinder 28 is wit-hdrawn by the action of the spring, thereby releasing the brake. A normally open valve 63 controls an exhaust passage 64 in cominunication with the port 57 and relieves the pressure within the pipe 37 back of the check valve 58 and permits the escape to atmosphere of any air which may leak past the valve 44, thereby preventing the Linintentional setting of the brakes by reason of such possible leakage. The valve 63 is under the control of an electromagnet 65 in the same circuit with the circuit of the electromagnet- 54, this electromagnet seating the valve when energized. The coil of the inagw net 54 is connected with the lines 38, 39 through the lines 66, 67. The coil of the lelectromagnet 65 is connected with the lines 88, 39 through the lines 68, 69. The car 70 .arries a downwardly-projecting shoe 71 so disposed that it passes between the brake members 20, 22. When therefore the brake is set, bringing these two members sufth ciently close together to grip the shoe, the car is stopped and held until the brake is released.

The operation of the device is as follows: Upon the closing of the switch 41, the electromagnet-s 54 and 65 are energized, unseating the valve 50 and seating the valve 63. Air is at once admitted to the brake cylinder 28 and the brakes are set. The cars on the entire line are thereby stopped as soon as they come to engagement with one of the brakes, and are held until an attendant releases them separately by operating the several valves 60.

Wle claim as our invention- 1. I n a system for controlling railway cars, 1n combination, a track, a plurality of separate brake appliances associated with the track, a controlling station, and means operable at the controlling station for simul taneously moving the several braking appliances to operative position.

2. In a system for controlling railway cars, in combination, a track, a plurality of separate braking appliances associated with the track, a controlling station, means operable at the controlling station for simultaneously moving the several braking appliances to operative position, and means for releasing such appliances separately.

8. In a system for controlling railway cars, in combination, a track, a plurality of braking appliances associated with the track, a controlling station, and electro-pneumatic means operable at the controlling station for simultaneously moving the several braking appliances to operative position.

4. 'In a system for controlling railway cars, in combination, a track, a plurality of means being operable at the controlling station.

6. In a system for controlling cars, in combination, a track, a friction device for engaging a part of a car moving on the track, a controlling station remote from the friction device, electro-pneumatic means for moving the friction device to operative position, such moving means being operable at the controlling station, and means located adjacent the friction device for moving the same to inoperative position.

7. In a braking system, in combination, a track, a plurality of braking appliances associated with the track, an air motor associated with each braking appliance for actuating the same, an air tank connected With each motor, normally-closed valve mechanism interposed in the connection between each tank and the motor associated there- 20 electric circuit, and independent means for 25 exhausting air from each motor, such means being independent of the main valve mechamsm.

MAYO H. BUROHARD. ROBERT P. NOBLE. l/Vitnesses as to the signature of Mayo H. Burchard:

Louis K. GILLsoN, E. M. KLATCHER. Vitnesses as to the signature of Robert P. Noble:

H. J. ROBINSON, F. H. PHiLLRIcK.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

